Kaidan (MR)
Kaidan Shepard, often playfully nicknamed "Junior" by his friends, is the eldest son of the legendary John Shepard and Ashley Williams. Born on the Citadel amidst the galaxy’s reconstruction effort less than a year after the Reaper War, he grew up in a life of great privilege and affluence because of his relationship to his famous father. This led to Kaidan feeling pressured into living up to his parents’ success and wanting to be acknowledged as a person and not simply Shepard’s son. Biography Early life Kaidan was born one year after the Battle of Earth, in which his parents, Ashley Williams and John Shepard, both renowned soldiers in the Systems Alliance military and the Citadel Council’s two human Spectres served in the Citadel Allied Forces during the Reaper invasion that ended in a pyrrhic victory in favor of the coalition. Their victory resulted in the destruction of the Reapers and most synthetic life. Soon thereafter, he makes his first debut as a newborn infant being held by his mother with the first name of Kaidan, a name he shared with the late Staff Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko, an old friend of his parents who fought alongside them during the Eden Prime War. One week after his birth, he is held by his father and proclaimed that his son’s destiny was his own but that he would nevertheless be kept safe from any harm the galaxy’s horrors would try to inflict on him. He immediately became a matter of public interest, and news of the birth was spread throughout Citadel and Alliance space. In his youth, Kaidan and his younger siblings were raised mostly by Shepard, a respected public figure who has long since retired because of his injuries as an admiral. Ashley, meanwhile, remained in the military and was promoted to the rank of captain and was unable to be at home for long. On one snowy morning, Kaidan and his siblings rushed to greet their mother who came home for shore leave, excitedly asking her to play with them. A hero's legacy Several years later, when classes at school were dismissed for the holiday, Kaidan and his brothers David and Ethan were seen taking a shuttle ride home with their friends from the Tayseri Ward. David complains about getting detention again while Ethan passes the time by trying to tell jokes, though Kaidan seemed to be preoccupied with preparing for the upcoming entrance exams for junior high school and wonders what tomorrow will bring. Soon, they are warmly greeted by their maternal grandmother. When the household receives a holo-vid from their mother, the boys were ecstatic to learn she was coming home for shore leave. Possible future? In 2198, Shepard had a vision of his son Kaidan as a tall young man standing in the middle of a large crowd of mixed species, looking to him for guidance and peace, unifying the galaxy as his father once did. Javik had a similar vision, only this time Kaidan was surrounded by what looked to be his comrades-in-arms. When Liara saw this, she saw that he was among the friends who surrounded him and supported his goals. However, when Ka’hairal Balak investigated, he was very displeased to see Shepard’s son, whom he believed that if any of his offspring rose to power, the batarians could never become the dominant power of the galaxy. Personality and traits Kaidan’s personality is derived from both his parents, although Liara T’Soni noted that he takes more after his father than his mother. Being generally well-spoken, friendly and polite, he shows a great maturity for his age. However, Kaidan is also strong willed and determined like his mother; he even has a fascination of poetry. At the same time, however, Kaidan has a fierce temper similar to his mother’s and doesn’t back down from an argument. He apparently doesn’t like being teased, as Kaidan finds it irritating when he’s called "junior" instead of his given name. Despite their similarities, Shepard and Kaidan differ in a number of ways: whereas Shepard grew up as an orphan, Kaidan’s family is always there for him; whereas Shepard had no friends as a child, Kaidan has many friends; whereas Shepard’s talents come to him naturally, Kaidan had to work hard to get to where he was at. Kaidan has a close attachment with his parents, whom he affectionately calls "Mother" and "Father". He also has great respect for his father; he was even pleased to hear from Liara, Tali’Zorah and Garrus Vakarian about how he resembled Shepard. It was due to his admiration for Shepard that Kaidan wanted to carry on his father’s legacy and protect the galaxy’s era of peace his father founded. However, it is also shown that Kaidan has a close yet distant relationship with his mother ever since Ashley’s career as a soldier changed with her captaincy. He loves his mother and is overjoyed whenever they spend time together, but life in the military sometimes prevent Ashley from being around all the time. Although Kaidan is understanding of his often absent-mother, deep down he feels neglected and is resentful of the idea of carrying on the Williams family tradition and opted to follow a different path than hers. Because of all this, Kaidan initially questioned the meaning of a soldier due to the fact his mother’s duties kept her away from home for a period of time. Eventually, when Kaidan is finally exposed to the complications of his father’s legacy and realizes the sacrifices soldiers had to make, his relationship with his mother improves significantly and resolves to carry on his father’s wish of bringing peace and happiness to the galaxy. Appearance Kaidan has a light skin complexion, and inherited the dark brown hair from his mother. He has blue eyes and the shape of his father’s face. He has straight hair with one side parted on the left side of his face while the other part is banged on the right side of his forehead. As noted by Liara T'Soni, he bears a striking resemblance to his father. Abilities Kaidan’s skills are largely unknown, but he was noted by his childhood friend Andrea Taylor to be easily able to pass advanced placement tests without cheating. From a young age, Kaidan demonstrated hints of being extremely intelligent, showing a keen and analytical mind on par with a salarian, which aids him in biological and other scientific-related knowledge as well as solving advanced mathematical equations and outsmart Samantha Traynor when playing chess. Quotes ''Mass Effect: A Hero's Legacy'' *''(about his nickname)'' "My name's 'Kaidan,' not 'junior!'" *''(to his father)'' "After all, we have our memories and our feelings. And the most important thing of all is that our hearts are connected." *''(to his mother after realizing his dream)'' "The countless innocent people we are born alongside and grow up with, what it means to protect them… It all meant a lot to dad. I want to take good care of them like he did, mom. No matter who we are or where we come from, I’ll ensure dad’s legacy of ensuring the peace he made for us will be preserved. I promise you." Trivia *He is named after Staff Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko, an L2 biotic who accompanied John Shepard and Ashley Williams during the Eden Prime War. *As mentioned before, Kaidan inherited both his father’s facial features and eyes, as seen when Tali remarked that Shepard and Kaidan looked almost identical. *Kaidan is voiced by Brianne Siddall as a child. 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